R1: Yves Lavigne is in charge of the bantamweights. They touch up and Lima cracks an inside leg kick. Nakamura snatches Lima's hips and puts the Brazilian on his back, but Lima attacks instantly from his guard. Nakamura is defending a host of submission attempts from the busy Lima, who is clearly the more offensive fighter and controlling the pace from the bottom. Nakamura finally unleashes two stiff rights from the top. Nakamura throws hammerfists while Lima spins for an armbar that isn't there, then a few more. Lima ties up with loose omoplata and Nakamura backs out and stands over Lima. Nakamura throws a half-hearted right on his way back down into Lima's guard.

Lima shrimps out and creates a scramble that enables him to stand, but he lands a low knee to Nakamura's cup and we pause. Action restarts with one minute and Lima is blitzing heavy combinations. Nakamura drops levels with a double leg that Lima counters with some liberal fence-grabbing. He tries to take Nakamura's back but ends up on his back as the round ends. 10-9 Lima for the more effective striking and grappling.

R2: Lima stuffs a takedown, cracks Nakamura with a nice horizontal elbow and then duplicates the low, illegal knee from the first round. Lavigne justifiably docks one point for the foul. Nakamura shoots right away and Lima repels him momentarily in the clinch, then succumbs to an outside trip. Lima not quite as frenetic from guard as he was earlier. Short hammerfists from Nakamura, who has Lima's head on the cage to defend the armbar. Lima looking for a deep-half sweep with a high guard and good wrist control, but Nakamura defends. Now Lima is all over Nakamura again, seeking another omoplata and then rolling into an armbar. Nakamura peppers with a sharp flurry to slow Lima down.

Lima matching Nakamura with strikes from the bottom, then another omoplata attempt. Lima spins behind Nakamura and looks for a toe hold, but Nakamura breaks free and stands. Lima brilliantly pounces for a leg lock and Nakamura drops back to counter with one of his own as the bell sounds. Another great round in which Nakamura spent more time defending than mounting offense. With the point deduction, I have it 9-9 Lima for everything: striking, grappling, control and aggression.

R3: Lima goes rapid fire with more punches and then clips Nakamura with a knee before being taken down. Lima contorts into another omoplata that's too loose but his wrist control ties Nakamura up. Nakamura escapes and shows more output with punches as Lima's head is on the cage. Nakamura lands a few hard shots and Lima twists for another leg lock and they both wrench the hold on each other -- and Yves Lavigne inexplicably stands them up with 45 seconds left. Atrocious stand up. They tie up and Lima rolls for a kneebar as the frame closes. 10-10 for equal offense, making my fight score 29-28 for Lima.

All three judges score it 29-27 for Hiroshi Nakamura, who defeats Rodrigo Lima by unanimous decision.